When You're Gone
by viper's fang
Summary: Basically, a two-shot based off of the Avril Lavigne song. Alexis misses Jaden and still is waiting for him to come back from the duel dimension. Warning: possible OOCness.


**Finally finished. Just a two-shot, but I might as well repost all of it and just delete the first half to make it a one-shot, since it's been so long since I've started this story. Kind of a songfic using "When You're Gone" by Avril Lavigne. It's my first romance fic, so don't expect greatness. I think it turned out blah.**

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**When You're Gone**

**Days feel like years when I'm alone**

Alexis sighed and glanced sadly at Jaden's empty seat again for the tenth time that day. It was like she was just waiting for him to magically appear in that old chair, slumped over and sleeping like usual. But like the last nine times, the empty seat mocked her wasted hope.

She forced herself to take a breath. She didn't want to accept the truth that the others had: Jaden wasn't ever coming back. Ever since the incident in the duel dimension, no one had seen hide or hair of the Slifer. Even Syrus eventually gave up on Jaden, and Sy was the one who believed that Jaden would come back the most!

It was only Alexis now who still had hope that Jaden would come back. But even Alexis had her doubts. Jaden had her sent to the stars without even blinking, really. Did she really want to see Jaden after that? The answer was yes, yes she did.

Despite the horrible things that happened in the duel dimension, Alexis still couldn't shake the image of the old Jaden, the one who was always up for a duel, the one who always smiled and had fun, not matter what the situation. That cute little smile of his and his carefree nature made Alexis feel relaxed for once in her life.

Before meeting Jaden, Alexis always had to be the perfect female duelist. The icy Obelisk Queen. But Jaden made anyone feel right at home just by talking to them. She didn't have to be the honor student around him. She didn't have to be the amazing Obelisk Queen. She was just Alexis, and Jaden was the person who taught her that.

Alexis' slim finger impatiently tapped the wooden desk as she threw another glare at the clock. There were only five minutes left of class, but it felt like an eternity. Even though the lesson was on rare cards, Alexis just couldn't force herself to focus.

In the past, Alexis wouldn't ever miss the chance to hear about rare cards. But now, ever since Jaden was gone, she just couldn't force herself to focus on anything that used to entertain her in the past. She even stopped hanging around Hassleberry, Chazz, Syrus, and Blair so much. Even dueling lost it's appeal.

**Everything that I do reminds me of you**

Alexis collapsed to her knees after being beaten by a Ra Yellow student. It was someone that she could've beaten easily, had she've been more interested in the duel. Still, even this little event reminded Alexis of the time that Jaden had beaten her in duel out on the lake in their first year.

She smiled sadly at the memories. Then she remembered what happened in the duel dimension and wanted to cry. Didn't Jaden care for her and the rest of his friends? What had happened that changed him so much? Was it because it was his fault that Jesse got trapped in the alternate dimension the first time? Alexis didn't know, but she really wished that everything could just go back to normal. Before things were complicated.

The school grounds, the dorms, everything about the academy contained memories of her and Jaden. She couldn't escape him no matter where she went. And as Alexis was walking back to her dorm, she spotted Hassleberry and Blair wandering around. It had become a reflex just to avoid them now. Even talking to them brought back memories of Jaden.

Alexis spun on her heel and walked away in the opposite direction of her dorm just to avoid talking to the underclassmen. Because her head was reeling with painful thoughts, Alexis didn't realize that her feet took her to a place that used to be her ultimate comfort, but was now the place that Alexis dreaded seeing the most on the whole island: the Slifer dorms.

One small but insistent part of Alexis wanted to go back the way she came. But a a slightly louder, slightly more insistent voice was urging her to go inside and just let the memories wash over her. If nothing else, at least the Slifer dorms were abandoned now, so it was alright if Alexis cried.

**And the bed where you lie is made up on your side**

More and more often, Alexis found herself coming to Jaden's old room to cry. It was so hard to face the academy every day with a half-hearted smile on her face, pretending nothing was wrong. It was much easier for Alexis to run out and just come to the now abandoned dorm room to just sob away her anguish.

It was still so weird to see Jaden's bed made up nice and neat. Normally, it was perpetually rumpled from all of the naps that Jaden ditched class for. Plus, he was always too lazy to make his bed in the mornings.

Alexis suddenly noticed that the bed was made one day. This wasn't Jaden's room anymore. His room was always messy, a wreck, but it felt like home. Now, it was just a cold, dead room. The bed was made, and all of Jaden's clothes had been picked up and put away. It was like Alexis: empty.

She couldn't stand to see the bed the way it was anymore. Plus, Alexis was just so tired and exhausted. A little nap would be fine, right? She gingerly got on the bed and laid down. The mattress wasn't particularly soft in any way, but it was somehow the most comfortable thing that Alexis ever laid on. It wasn't long before she drifted off to sleep.

It had been so long since Alexis had a deep sleep that she didn't even notice when she was gently lifted from the bed and carried back to her dorms, where a familiar face gave her a wan smile as a slim hand brushed the hair from her eyes before disappearing.

**When you walk away, I count the steps that you take**

Alexis blinked awake to find herself back in the Obelisk dorm. On her own bed. She shot up and looked around. It was still kind of dusky, so wasn't morning yet, but there was no denying that she was in the Obelisk dorms. The room was infinitely larger than Jaden's and the bed was way softer.

She slumped back onto her pillows and sighed. Did she just dream that she had fallen asleep in Jaden's room? Alexis couldn't remember coming back to her room, but then again, everything kind of blurred together lately.

For a few minutes, Alexis tried to go back to sleep. But it wasn't long before she realized that it was impossible. She sighed and got up to get ready for the day.

What she wasn't expecting was an excited Syrus running up to her the moment she came out of the blue dorms. "I was looking for you!" he panted. "I couldn't find you last night, but I wanted to come tell you this morning before class..."

"What is it, Syrus?" Alexis asked, mildly annoyed. She didn't really want to be bothered. Still, Syrus hadn't looked this happy in...well, forever.

"Jaden's back!" he cried happily. Alexis' heart nearly stopped. He was back? He wasn't dead? When did he get back? She frantically tried to find the words to voice those questions out loud, but Syrus beat her to the punch. "He came back late last night, and I really wanted to tell you, but I didn't see you. So I came to tell you this morning."

"He's in his room?" Alexis asked, anxiously shifting from foot to foot. She wished she was there now.

"It's like he never left!" Syrus exclaimed.

Those were the trigger words. Alexis took off running. She had to see Jaden. Syrus quickly fell behind her, whining, but she didn't care.

Thick tangles of trees weren't enough to slow the determined Obelisk. All other thoughts were brushed aside. Alexis wasn't quite sure why she was obssessed with seeing Jaden, but she felt that if she didn't talk to him she would die a slow, agonizing death.

Finally the Slifer dorms came into view. Alexis slowed a little since her target was in sight.

When she got to Jaden's door, she hesitated slightly. Then she brushed her vague misgivings away and knocked on the door. Alexis waited for a few agonizing seconds. What if he didn't show? What if Syrus was just trying to cheer her up?

But no. The door drew open and Jaden's face appeared. "Oh, hey Alexis," he said nonchalantly.

"Hey, Jaden," Alexis said. Now that she was face-to-face with Jaden, she couldn't think of anything to say. All of her questions flew out of her head.

"I was just about to go grab some grub," Jaden said, trying to slip past.

"Uh, yeah. Care if I tag along,? I haven't had breakfast yet either."

"Sure," Jaden replied, sounding uncertain.

"So, where have you been?" Alexis asked, trying to start up a conversation.

Jaden just winced and ducked the question. "Nowhere, really."

"Syrus tells me that you beat Yubel," Alexis said, trying a different approach. This time, Jaden didn't talk at all. He seemed to be ignoring her.

Alexis gave up trying to talk to him and just walked with him down into the kitchen of the Slifer dorms with Jaden. They ate in silence. And as soon as Jaden was done eating, he seemed to be in a rush to get away from her.

"See you around, Alexis," he said, waving over his shoulder.

"Wait!" she called. "Aren't you going to class?"

"I'm going to be sleeping either way," Jaden explained. "I might as well be comfortable, right?"

Alexis couldn't think of anything to say before Jaden slipped away.

**"I missed you"**

It had been several weeks since Jaden's return, but Alexis hadn't seen him since that one morning. He never showed up to class, and was never around when Alexis and the others tried to visit him. Alexis was worried about him. He was purposely avoiding them, and they knew it. Why?

At this rate, Alexis wouldn't see him before the end of the year, at graduation.

For once, Alexis decided to skip class. She just couldn't make herself sit through another class anymore.

She wandered the school grounds, wondering vaguely where Jaden was at the moment. Wondering if he was even thinking about her. By chance, she found him fishing on a cliffside by the ocean.

"Jaden!"

He looked up, startled, then looked away, as if ashamed. He started to compulsively gather up his fishing gear, probably to run from her again.

"Ah, hey, Alexis. Isn't there class?" he asked worriedly.

"Yes, but you don't seem to worry about them, so why do you care if I don't?" she snapped waspishly.

Jaden fell silent at her sudden outburst. "Look, Jaden. We know that you're avoiding us. We deserve to at least know why." _I deserve to know why._

He didn't answer, just stared over her shoulder. Tears welled up in her eyes. Did he hate her? Is that why he wouldn't talk to her?

Without thinking, Alexis suddenly walked towards Jaden and hugged him. She felt him stiffen under her touch, but she only hugged him tighter. "I missed you," she whispered into his ear.

Then she walked away, leaving him standing dumbfounded behind her.


End file.
